My method of birth control is being married.  My husband and I can't conceive children without medical intervention. 

If that weren't the case I'd take the pill.  However taking the pill gives me the "pregnancy mask" all over my body and face.  So, you know, I'm protected from getting pregnant and I don't look like anyone you'd want to touch.

 

I can't take the pill -- the hormones are too much for me. I was getting hormonal migraines every month like clockwork when on the pill.

So, after #3 I talked to my doctor.  Hubby & I knew we were more or less done, I did not want hormones, and we weren't ready for surgeries. My doctor suggested the Mirena, a hormone-based IUD. I was concerned about the hormone, but it is such a tiny amount, released so slowly and straight into the uterus, that it has not bothered me at all.

I'm just about to the 5 yr point, and we are debating what to do now. Replacement will not be covered on our insurance here (family planning is not covered), so we are debating whether to replace it on our own dime, or for my husband to have the surgery. 

His surgery would be R$500, my replacement would be R$2000.  

On the flip side, the Mirena is reversible if we ever change our mind, I don't have periods while on it and it is effective immediately; his surgery is permanent, and takes about 3 months or so (pending follow-up sperm count visits) to be fully effective.  And I'd start having periods again.

So, we're weighing all of that carefully to decide what to do.....we have about a month or so.  Either way I have to get the current Mirena removed, so we need to factor in what that will cost.

If cost were not a factor, we would not even consider having him do the surgery and would just stick with the Mirena; we've been very happy with it so far.

Joanna~ That's how I feel about my current drug (it works because no one wants to touch me!) I mean, I couldn't get pregnant if I tried anyway, but - it makes me look exhausted (which I am), bloated, and sweaty - so, you know, there's the added protection in that it turns me into man repellant!

Heather~ That would be a tough choice for sure! I really like the idea of Mirena though. On a completely unrelated topic, I think it is something that should be offered to women getting abortions, with some sort of incentive attached (maybe one or the other is free – I’m not sure how it would work, and my plan isn’t completely formulated, it’s just something I’ve thought about!) I just think that if we are going to give women abortions, we should also give them something to help them prevent future pregnancies. Not everyone has the knowledge or responsibility (or even the physical ability) to handle the pill. But if a young girl is having an abortion and is offered Mirena, it may prevent her having a repeat abortion sometime later…

I hope that makes sense and doesn’t get me attacked! I am pro-choice, but I am not pro-abortion (I think I got that phrase from Robin!) and I just wish there was something we were doing to prevent repeat procedures so that there weren’t any women using abortion as birth control.

I’m sure that all just came off wrong. !

Hormonal contraceptives and condoms-at the same time! I am terrified of HPV!

I don't like my current method and have yet to find anything I do like. I'm not holding out any hopes for it either. I'm on my fifth type of pill (I think its number five) in the last year and something and still nothing. I'm hoping it does something somewhere in there cause I'm not getting anything from it otherwise. If I wasn't afraid of getting worse again I'd stop taking everything cause I don't like the idea of hormones to start with.

I if I did have good reactions and wanted to be on BC, I'd probably do the pill cause if I stop taking it, it leaves my body faster than other methods that I'm aware of.

The pill.

Having no uterus :)

But before my hyst, I tried every type of BC except for the patch.  First reason:  manage endo.  Second, of course, was for birth control.

I loved the Mirena IUD.  Loved the Yasmin pill.  Depo Provera shot was fine too. 

I've tried so many birth control pills I can't even remember them all, lol.  But Yasmin was my fav.

SIF, your idea about offering the mirena to those getting abortions is a great one. I totally hear what you're saying (love that phrase: pro choice but not pro abortion.....that sums me up, too).  It's also great in that it's a one-time cost, so even if it weren't free to the girls, at least you pay for it only the one time and that's it for 5 yrs.

I seriously think we'll wind up doing the mirena again, even though it will cost us more. The extra benefits just scream "worth it" to me.....

I have 5 children with one on the way. Clearly, I don't use birth control :) 

When I first started "doing the deed," I got on the pill, and I hated it. Not because of any awful side effects but having to remember to take it daily. After a few months, I switched to the ortho evra patch and loved it. So long as you don't mind a sticker attached to one of your butt cheeks for a week at a time, it's really convenient and great.

After having Eliana (DD #1), we just stuck to using condoms until we were ready to try for #2.

After having Josie (DD #2), we stuck to condoms the first 6 months and then decided to try natural family planning. As soon as she stopped nursing on a frequent basis and after only 1 cycle of getting my period back (when she was 9 months old), we didn't do so well with the planning and were pregnant by the time I should've been getting my next period. After finally confirming the pregnancy (with a blood test because we kept getting mixed results w/ the HPT and things just didn't feel "right"), I had a miscarriage within the next few days. Maybe TMI, but we had unprotected sex once in the following month (about 3 weeks after the m/c, which should've been well past when I ovulated again) and now here we are, 38 weeks pregnant w/ DD #3.

Obviously natural family planning isn't in the cards again, but I definitely want something long term. Toby swears he would be more than happy to go get a vasectomy, but I just am not ready to make such a final decision in terms of having more children (or not). I mean, he's only 24 and I'm only 21. We could change our minds about having more in 5 years when the rest of our kids are all headed off to school, and with the big V, there isn't such a great success rate if you decide to try and go back.

Anyways, I'm either going to get the Copper IUD (which has no hormones and lasts up to 10 years) or Implanon (which is inserted into your arm and lasts 3 years). Then whenever they need to be replaced (or we want more children), we can decide what to do then.

Wow, and I just realized that I totally went way above and beyond just answering the question asked of me! Sorry!